It can take a lot of time to learn to code, especially if you want to become a software developer. After all, developing involves a wide range of technical abilities. Many schools now follow a full-time schedule to reflect this reality and hasten the learning process as coding boot camps have multiplied.

But not everyone can make that work. You’re undoubtedly leaning toward part-time education if you have a job or other unavoidable commitments. The good news is that you are not at all by yourself. (Many boot camps have part-time schedules as well.) Is that terrible news? Part-time education has its difficulties, despite the fact that it could be more convenient for your schedule than a full-time commitment. When new obligations arise, you could find it challenging to maintain your studies. Or, you could find it difficult to balance working long hours and maintaining your duties.

We’re going to look at solutions to these issues today. We’ll share some pearls of wisdom for learning to code part-time by drawing on both personal experience and productivity best practices. Whether it applies to you, take a look at the following five suggestions to see if they can be of assistance:

 

1. Set specific objectives.

2. Develop time management skills

3. Make thoughtful course selections

4. Work together to code in order to establish social ties

5. Pay attention to other hobbies

 

 

Set specific objectives.

You should carefully consider your motivations before starting a learn-to-code path while managing other obligations. Why do you want to become a programmer? What types of technology are you interested in learning? You may better define your priorities and create useful goals by providing answers to these questions. Now is the time to become familiar with SMART goals if you haven’t before. Each of the characteristics in the acronym—Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-Bound—contributes to effective goal-setting.

 

Specific

Be clear about what you intend to accomplish. Instead, respond to the following inquiries to ensure that your objectives are clear enough: What are you trying to achieve?  What actions must you take to accomplish it? Examples of specialized learn-to-code objectives include the following: Learn to build full-stack web apps utilizing a MEAN or LAMP technology stack. Learn to use Java and Selenium to automate software testing. Learn the fundamentals of JavaScript to build a solid foundation. React Don’t let these illustrations constrain you. However, be explicit about what it is that you want to learn.

 

Measurable

It’s crucial to quantify your objectives. After all, how will you know if you’re making progress or when you’ve reached your objective if you can’t measure or track your results? Any metric you decide on should have some significance for your plan. Examples of measurable objectives include:

1. Learn the MEAN or LAMP stack well enough to build and maintain two web applications.
2. Learn to create a full suite of unit tests and automate software testing with Java and Selenium.
3. Master vanilla To build a strong enough foundation in JavaScript to understand React, complete three JavaScript coding challenges.
4. Obviously, if you’re just getting started, these objectives may appear ambitious. However, they all share the crucial quality of being quantifiable.

 

Achievable

Be realistic while creating your goals to ensure that they are reachable. Is your goal something you can reasonably achieve, ask yourself? Rethinking your aim will help you avoid hassles if the response is “no.” The amount of time you have, your background, and other considerations will all affect what is feasible for a fresh learner. For instance, if you are already familiar with HTML and CSS, learning pure JavaScript may be doable. However, you might want to start with markup if you’ve never written any before moving on to a programming language like JavaScript.

 

Relevant

Why are you setting this objective, you could ask? To make sure the goal you’re setting is pertinent, be clear about your motive. Because of its emphasis on front-end and back-end programming, a full-stack web development course is probably not going to feel relevant to you if you want to be a UX designer. But it would make sense to get expertise in HTML, CSS, and programs like Figma, Sketch, and the Adobe Suite.

 

Time-Bound

Your time horizon should be well defined. Think about the times you will begin and end working on the stated goal. You run the danger of losing motivation and giving up without a clear sense of time. Alternatively, you may keep going forever without succeeding. If you don’t make your deadline, making sure your goals are time-bound can still be helpful. Give yourself six months, for instance, to master a new tech stack for web development. If six months go by with little progress, you could wonder if your goal wasn’t meaningful, specific, quantifiable, or reachable enough. Refine and try once more.

 

2. Develop time management skills

It will be difficult to learn to code part-time without effective time management. Once you have one or two SMART goals, you may concentrate on time management to help you balance all of your responsibilities: Specify and order your tasks: What must you do to help your objectives—and the rest of your life—succeed? Which of these tasks is the most crucial? Put your objectives and responsibilities in a clear order of importance and break them up into doable tasks. Focus first on the most crucial tasks. Make a plan and follow it: Purchase a paper calendar or download a calendar app. Set aside time to work on coding, then gradually complete the tasks you’ve outlined.

Create rewards for finishing tasks: grinding out a protracted course? After completing a module or two, buy yourself a coffee. You’re making great strides toward your SMART objective. Give yourself a nicer treat. complete your objective? Reward yourself with a special treat, such as a night out to dinner or a show. Try out several frameworks and systems: The internet is a wealth of knowledge when it comes to time management strategies. Look at techniques like the Eisenhower matrix, the 1-3-5 rule, bullet journaling, don’t break the chain, the 1-3-5 rule, the 1-3-5 rule, and the Pomodoro method, among others. Put them to the test after that.

 

3. Make thoughtful course selections

You’ve made the decision to enroll in a course that will help you reach your SMART objective, and you’ve scheduled time in your calendar for studying. Great! Sadly, there are so many possibilities for courses that it could be overwhelming. YouTube videos, online education resources, live classes, etc. are all available. *Do some study before selecting a course at random. As you narrow down your choices, take into account the following:

1. What will the price be?
2. Does the mode of delivery fit your preferred learning approach? (For instance, audible, tactile, or visual)
3. Will the self-paced or structured learning fit into your schedule?
4. Does the degree of difficulty fit your level of experience?

It pays to choose a course carefully if you’re going to put time and money into it. The “From Scratch” classes from HKCC  are a good place to start.

 

4. Work together to code in order to establish social ties

You might discover that you have less time for socializing after setting a goal and enrolling in a course. You may certainly code with a social component, though. You might:

1. Look for study groups or other gatherings in your city or your area of interest on Meetup.com or Facebook.
2. Look for simple tasks, such as 100 Days of Code.
3. To ask and respond to questions, utilize Stack Overflow, Reddit, or a forum specific to your programming language.

 

5. Pay attention to other hobbies

This may seem contradictory given how much productivity advice we’ve provided: occasionally, you may need to spend less time coding. Maintaining your coding efforts will be simpler if you keep some balance, whether it is by socializing with friends and family, engaging in a hobby, reading, or exercising. It seems like a surefire way to burn out if you base your entire existence on work, code, and the necessities of survival. Additionally, burnout significantly increases your probability of giving up on your objectives.

 

Concluding remarks and further steps

Hopefully, some of these tips have struck a chord with you and given you more self-assurance as you embark on your learn-to-code journey. Maybe you’re feeling prepared to begin honing the technical abilities you’ll unavoidably require.